New Paradigm I: Tears of Cerinia
by KaijuKnight
Summary: AU. Stuck on the outskirts of Lylat was the last place Fox McCloud wanted to be, but Fate has a way of screwing with you when you least expect it. Now he is marooned on a strange planet; forced into a fight to save an entire race. But in order to save them and the woman he is starting to care for, he will have to discover the man he was always meant to become.


**Hello Readers, Writers and Blessed Lunatics! I fear to admit that I have been on a rather long writing hiatus as of the last several months, but thanks to the influence of the Star Fox game franchise and a bit of inspiration, I am back with a vengeance. **

**To brief you all, this will not be my only Star Fox fiction, and with my return to writing will come new chapters for my Legend of Zelda stories. I know, It's about time!**

**Please enjoy my personal twist on the SF Universe and a huge shout out to The Pen vs The Sword and Emile the Watcher, whose stories have greatly influenced my writing and this story.**

**Rating information: I am rating the entire New Paradigm Series M. This rating is for the possible inclusion of Language, Accurate depictions of War (Violence, Blood, Gore, Tactics and Crimes), Sexual content (intended assault, innuendo, gestures and Language), Suspense, Drama, More language, Death (to include but not limited to shooting, stabbing, evisceration, immolation, tearing asunder, drowning, electrocution, cannibalism, trampling and bunnies), nudity and the possible inclusion of lite sensuality. Viewer (Reader?) Discretion is Advised.**

**Disclaimer: Star Fox and it's unique characters are the property of Rare. I do not own any of it (And if I did, Command would never have happened and Adventures would have been EPIC!)**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

CH.1 If this is a dream, Somebody wake me up!

Stars. That was the one thing that was always a constant out here. Against the velvet backdrop of endless space, a man could always find comfort in the eternal presence of the stars. They were the universes silent arbiters, seeing all within their lidless gaze. It had been this way since the dawn of time, and as he thought on this, as he had time and time before, he watched them. As he stared out into the vast emptiness before him, so too did the stars stare back.

Yet this fact did not calm the mind of Fox McCloud as it did in the past. Instead, it irritated him, knowing that even when he wanted to be alone in his thoughts; he could never avoid the stars.

'Not that they're all that interested in watching me.' He thought dryly to himself as he continued to scan his field of vision outside the dome of his fighter. 'Nothing going on _here_ that's worth seeing.'

"What did you say, Falcon VII? I didn't copy, Over."

Fox swore under his breath as he realized his error, too late to help the circumstances. He hadn't realized the he had been murmuring along with his sour thoughts, loud enough to elicit the question from his Squadron Commander.

"Disregard, Lead. Just talking to myself. Nothing to report, Over."

He knew that wouldn't be the end of it, but Fox didn't feel like explaining his feelings to the Lieutenant. He already had the officer's bad side all to himself. He didn't want to give another reason for the man to direct more ire his way.

"Keep the chatter off the comms, McCloud! Do not make me tell you again! OUT!"

Fox sneered at his control panel, aggressively flipping a switch on his comm system and activating manual key mode. His frown deepened as he resumed his scan, keeping a close watch on the cluster of small asteroids they were passing. The cluster always made him nervous. The masses of rock and crystal were not really a threat to the eight Cornerian Vector-class fighters; they just idly floated there with no real flight path or trajectory. But Fox could never shake the uneasy feeling he got around them. The asteroids themselves presented no real threat, but their stable position, close proximity to one another and manageable size made them the perfect place to lie in wait. He had brought this fact to the Lieutenant's attention the day they started this patrol. It was not well received.

Being one of two brand new pilots to the squadron was bad enough, what made it worse, and continued to do so, was the fact that his name was McCloud. Everyone in the Lylat system knew the name McCloud. Most associated the name with the famous Star Fox team and its leader, James. He, along with several others, had made a name for themselves in the last war by single handedly taking on the bulk of Venom's forces, even going so far as to assault the planet itself and live to tell about it. Everyone equated the name of McCloud with the greatest pilots and warriors in all of Lylats history. But for Fox, in his current position within the Cornerian Military, his name told everyone around him that he thought he was better than them and that he had a chip on his shoulder. That assumption was why his Squadron Leader had Fox locked into his crosshairs.

The man had listened to the young vulpine as he explained his concerns over the asteroids. Even nodded his head a couple of times, in what seemed like an acknowledgement of the pilots reasoning. He had not stopped Fox when he suggested that in future patrols they make a full and methodical pass around the patch of space rocks, just to be sure there were no enemy fighters or pirates setting up an ambush. And after Fox had respectfully ended his recommendation, the officer just sat there staring at him, nothing on his face to show how he felt or what he was thinking. Then, with no warning, the Doberman had blown up!

Fox shuddered at the memory of the half hour tirade he faced that day. The Lieutenant had been furious, going on and on about how thankful he was to have a "greenleaf" pilot there to tell him how to do his job or how fortunate it was for the squadron to be graced with such a skilled and "inexperienced" expert. On and on and on he went, wielding his authority more like a sword and shield than a badge of honor and trust. And Fox had just stood there, taking it all on the chin like a good little respectful soldier; not once meeting his commander's gaze as he maintained his rigid position of attention. For once he was thankful for all the practice he had gotten at the academy. After the Lieutenant had exhausted all of his rage, he dismissed Fox with one final jab.

"You are not your Father, McCloud! Never forget that while you are serving under ME!"

That had been more than three months ago. Fox sighed as he passed out of view of the asteroids, content to accept that they would not be ambushed… this time. Fox went back to scanning as he thought over the months that followed, now locked once again into thinking about his predicament. He had tried to keep his nose clean since the altercation with his commanding officer, but his efforts were stunted by five of the other six pilots in the squadron.

Two of them had been flying with the Lieutenant since the officer took command. Both were veteran Non Commissioned Officers (NCOs) and one had served under the previous commander. Neither liked the fact that a mere "Private" had thought it his duty to amend the commander's leadership. They made it evident by coming straight to Fox when there was an unpleasant job to be done. Fox knew they were singling him out, but there was nothing he could do about it. Even if he went to someone about the inappropriate and unfair treatment, the Bear and the Wolf would simply explain that he needed to be taught discipline and respect after revealing his natural attitude. He also knew that if that were to happen, the treatment would get worse…Assuming that was possible.

The other three pilots had heard about the outburst just as quickly. They responded to it by shunning Fox, accepting the assumption that he had chip on his shoulder and wasn't a team player. He really wouldn't have minded this if the rest of their actions had not come with it. Each of the three young pilots was extremely critical of him. To them, he could do nothing right and whenever they had a chance to make that the case, they took it. One of them, a skinny Weasel that looked too slim to join the military, had taken to going behind his back during those nasty jobs that he had to do and undoing the what he had already done. This had resulted in severe consequences when Fox had told the NCOs that he was done and they found that he wasn't. Another, a heavy set badger had simply taken to berating him, letting him know how useless he thought Fox was. The last one, though, a squinty-eyed Leopard, tried to provoke him. He had even tried to start a fight with him one night, catching the vulpine off guard with a quick right cross. Fox had taken it across the muzzle and would have retaliated, knowing that none of his fellow pilots could match him in a fight, but he saw the situation for what it was; a trap. The only five people in the room were the most junior members of the squadron. If he fought back, three of them would say he started it and there would not be enough evidence to prove otherwise. So he stood there, just staring at the Leopard as the cat became angry that Fox wasn't fighting back. He threw two more punches, a quick left hook and another right cross before he got bored and walked away, resigning to the fact that he would not be able to provoke the vulpine.

That had been two nights ago. The succeeding days had been without incident so far, leaving Fox wondering when the punishment would start again. He was thankful when the commander had scrambled them that morning, partially because it was the one time he was able to make himself look good, since he was always the first one in uniform and ready to fly. The other reason was that he knew that for the next four plus hours, they would all be busy doing their job and not making his life a living hell.

"Falcon Squadron, This is Falcon Leader, Comms check, Over."

The sound of the speakers jumping to life brought Fox out of his thoughts and he prepared to answer.

"Falcon II, Lima Charlie, Over."

"Falcon III, Lima Charlie, Over."

"Falcon IV, Lima Charlie, Over."

"Falcon V, Lima Charlie, Over."

"Falcon VI, Lima Charlie, Over."

Fox listened intently as the rest of the squadron sounded off, waiting for his turn in the line. As Falcon VI finished, he replied, remembering to key his mic before speaking.

"Falcon VII, Lima Charlie, Over."

"F-Falcon VIII, Lima Charlie, Over."

Fox couldn't help the small smile that spread across his face as the gentle voice of the Shrew came over the line. Thus far, the only other newbie to the squadron was the only other pilot Fox had taken the time to learn the name of. His fellow private was Kevin Dean, a gentle wisp of a man that Fox would never have seen joining the Military had he not met him there.

"Falcon Squadron, Lead has you Lima Charlie. Turn around point reached, let's head for home. Out!"

Fox turned his attention back to flying as he saw the Lieutenant bank right, followed by the rest of the squadron as they stayed in their wide formation. Only after he was certain they were done making anymore major course corrections did Fox go back to thinking about the only soldier junior to him.

Kevin was also the only member of the squadron who didn't dislike Fox or make assumptions about him. Mostly because Fox didn't think the man had a hateful bone in his entire body. Unlike the other young pilots, after Kevin had heard about the altercation with the commander, he came to Fox and asked him what had happened. When Fox told him what had brought it on, the shrew squinted his eyes, winkled his nose and quickly shook his head, as if he had sniffed too much pepper and sneezed from it.

"Why would the commander have a problem with that? After all, it sounds like a legitimate concern."

Fox smiled at what he had seen as validation, but insisted the young soldier keep his opinion on the matter quiet. They already had one scapegoat in the squad; he didn't think they needed another. Even so, whenever the other pilots would give Fox any grief, Kevin was there ready to step in on Fox's behalf. The two had become good friends and Fox was grateful for the only bit of bright relief he had in his rather dark predicament.

'Stop feeling sorry for yourself! Pull yourself together!'

He scolded himself for what seemed like the hundredth time. His thoughts had been on his situation almost constantly the past few weeks and it had seriously affected his mood. He had tried so hard to cheer himself up, even tried to let Kevin do it, but he was starting to feel hopeless about his situation and the possibility of it changing.

'It feels like so long ago…'

* * *

**_Almost Four Months Ago…_**

_"Ladies and Gentlemen, the Corneria Flight Academy is proud to present, your graduating class of 2240!"_

_Cheers erupted from the gathered crowd as friends, family and faculty of the proud school stood to congratulate the three hundred and nine students who were now ending one of the most tumultuous times of their, thus far, short lives. All around the auditorium, men, women and children of all ages proudly yelled the names of the young people they came to celebrate that day. Slowly, the crowd quieted as the president of the school continued, introducing himself, the Dean of Students, the Head Coach and the Chief Flight Instructor, each of whom recited a speech that most of the assembled students believed to be repeated every year._

_After the cornerstones of the academy had finished, the president came to the podium again to introduce the valedictorian to the crowd. All eyes focused on the short, green frog as he made his way across the stage and stepped up on a stool the president provided for him. The action elicited some knowing snickers from the graduates as they quietly made fun of who they saw as the schools biggest nerd. The Frog's speech was sort and to the point, mostly because he seemed to be extremely nervous and fidgety being the center of attention. But even with sweating what may have been half of his body's water content, he had made it through the speech and stepped down. As he rapidly made his way down off the stage to join his fellow students, the chief faculty all rose and took their places on the stage as they prepared to deliver the diplomas to their departing students. _

_00000_

_"Graduating as a First Class Pilot, Falco Lombardi!"_

_At the sound of his name, the blue avian strutted across the stage, turning his head to eye a pair of female graduates in the front of the auditorium. The two giggled and whispered quickly to each other as they watched the charming, bad boy of the school receive his diploma and continue down the stage, winking and cocking his fingers at the girls when he reached the stairs._

_00000_

_"Graduating with Honors and as a First Class Pilot, Fox McCloud!"_

_Most of the student body and everyone in the crowd stood and cheered at the name as the vulpine man walked calmly across the stage. His smile was warm as he received his diploma, sharing it with each of the chief faculty members as he shook their hands. He spent a moment longer with the chief flight instructor, as the two shared a brief embrace and spoke hushed words of thanks to each other. The cheering continued as the fox stepped of the stage and walked back to his seat._

_00000_

_"Graduating as Valedictorian and as a Third Class Pilot, Slippy Toad!"_

_The cheers from the crowd came mostly from a small section of the stands, where an older, bespectacled frog yelled encouragingly at the younger frog. Snickers and snorts of amusement could still be heard from the students, since the faculty had to lean over exaggeratingly to shake the graduate's hand. But no one dared laugh in two areas of the crowd. Not when they were sitting that close to the orange fox and the blue avian._

_00000_

_He still couldn't believe that it was finally here; the day he had spent all his life working up to. Fox wandered through the assembled crowd as he watched for the familiar faces he expected to be there. He had already seen Slippy, receiving lots of hugs and kind words from his parents and other assorted relatives that had all traveled to be here for this special day. He hadn't seen Falco yet, but knew the bird didn't have any family coming because they all lived on Titania and couldn't afford the trip. Of course, if he had asked Falco how he felt about it, Fox knew he would respond with an insincere 'I don't care' or other phrase meant to dismiss Fox's concern. _

_So here he was, looking through the crowd on his own trying to find the faces that he wanted to see. He had expected to find his Father and maybe Peppy Hare in attendance, but he hadn't seen any evidence that they were. He started to wonder if maybe he wasn't as good at spotting the elder McCloud as he used to be. After all, they had really only spent summers together since Fox had started at the Academy. Still, Fox knew how he'd recognize his father in a crowd; the aviator frame sunglasses that were an eternal presence on his face. He must have missed him somewhere in the crowd and he would have continued looking if he hadn't heard his name (sort of) being called thru the crowd._

_"Yo, Foxy!"_

_Fox rolled his eyes as he turned to see Falco waltzing across the auditorium toward him, his arms draped over the shoulders of a pair of girls, a calico cat and a brown vixen._

_"Hey, Falco. I see you've made some new friends." The vulpine said sarcastically as he raised his eyebrows at his longtime friend. "Do you plan on keeping them around or should I expect you to be running from them in the morning?"_

_The bird took his arm off the calico's shoulders and gasped as he clutched at his chest._

_"UUH, Fox, you wound me. How could you even suggest that I would have anything other than __**honorable**__ intentions with these young ladies?!"_

_Falco used wild hand gestures as he dramatically expressed his sarcastic pain. He finished with a slight bow, bringing his right hand down and behind the Calico. Fox would have thrown a comeback at his friend, had the Calico not jumped in surprise with a distractingly loud 'YELP'. Her vixen friend tried to restrain a giggle as Falco, still holding his mock bow, smirked and watched the afflicted feline with his eyes. Fox could do nothing but shake his head and sigh as the cat realized what had happened and moved to playfully push the avian for pinching her. Fox doubted that the cat was actually offended or that Falco would take her actions seriously. Judging by the mischievous grin on the girl's face, she had enjoyed the attention as much as Falco enjoyed giving it to her. _

_The interaction ended with the feline hugging and leaning into the bird, his arm once again draped across her shoulder. The vixen was openly giggling at this point and Fox was once again baffled by his friend's ways with the opposite sex. _

_"Besides, I don't plan on doing anything with this beautiful young fox to my left. But she is very interested in you, Foxy!"_

_Falco gave the young McCloud a knowing wink as the vixen walked towards him, her smile far less mischievous then her friends, but her 'interest' was well displayed in how she was looking at Fox._

_"Hi." She spoke softly as she held out her right hand toward the vulpine. "I'm Shira."_

_Fox took her hand and shook it gently; giving her as neutral a smile as he could muster so he didn't give her any ideas. She seemed to be shy, but Fox saw the look in her eye. She was putting on a show_

_"Hello Shira, I'm Fox. Nice to meet you." _

_Fox thought Shira might have said something more had Falco not announced his presence again._

_"Now that the intros are out of the way, what do you say we blow this joint and have a real celebration in Corneria City!"_

_Both girls seemed excited about the prospect, the calico's smile wider then Fox had seen it thus far. Any other time Fox would have said yes (and probably regretted it the next morning), but this time he wasn't ready to just leave. _

_"I'd love to, Falco, really, but I'm still looking for my Father or Peppy. I can't seem to find them."_

_The avian furrowed his brows at Fox, confusion evident on his face._

_"Come on, Fox, you probably just weren't looking hard enough. I mean, sure, Peppy is almost as short as Slippy and would probably drown in here, but you can spot your old man's glasses from a mile away"_

_Fox nodded to confirm his friend's statement._

_"And they should be looking for you, too. It's not like you're not the most recognizable student in the entire school right now! There's no other fox here that has your orange fur!"_

_Again, Fox nodded, slightly annoyed that his friend found it necessary to repeat all of the same thoughts that had gone through his own head._

_"But if they haven't found you and you haven't found them, then does that mean that th-"_

_"There you are, Fox!"_

_All four of the young students turned at the sound of the deep commanding voice that echoed at them from the crowd. Their eyes all locked onto the elder hound as he walked towards them, his posture straight as an arrow and his head held high. While he was missing the red cap that Fox and Falco were used to seeing him wear, they did see it tucked underneath his left arm. His red uniform was pressed as usual, the numerous medals and decorations clinking together as he stopped in front of the small group._

_"Ge-G-General Pepper!"_

_Fox's surprise was loud in his stuttering voice. The two girl's eyes widened and small gasps escaped their lips as the vulpine identified the proud hound. The only one who didn't seem astonished was Falco, who merely nodded at the officer and greeted him with "Yo, Sir."_

_"Congratulations Fox! Your Father would be very proud of you!"_

_00000_

_Having left the still stunned girls and his moderately disrespectful friend to wait in the auditorium, Fox now kept pace beside the General as they walked along the street._

_"This is an historic day for you, Fox. You are now the second McCloud to graduate this Academy and I doubt that you will be the last. If your Father had been here, h-"_

_"Why isn't my Father here, Sir?" Fox interrupted._

_The General didn't try to continue his sentence. Instead, he sighed, knowing full well he would not have been able to avoid this discussion._

_"I'm sorry, Fox. He wanted to be here… He really did. Unfortunately, Star Fox was hired by the Cornerian Government to keep an eye on the Cornerian-Venom Demilitarized Zone. There has been a lot of Venomian traffic in that area of late, and the senate wanted someone they could trust and rely on there in case there are more hostilities."_

_Fox sighed. The Cornerian-Vemon DMZ, a wide area of space flanked by defense grids and ships on both sides, was established after the last war. This imaginary line in space was meant to keep Venom's and, by extension, Andross' aggression contained in an area where they couldn't cause the rest of Lylat any trouble. Fox new the importance of sending his Father and Peppy to keep that peace, but it didn't make him feel any better about the two of them not being here._

_"Huh, just my luck. Could the senate have had any worse timing?"_

_Fox knew his sarcasm would not help anything, but seeing as how the situation had gone from irritating to frustrating, he felt he needed to let off a little steam._

_"I tried to delay their departure so that James and Peppy could be here, but when the senate says 'now', you don't tell them 'in four days'."_

_Fox perked up at this new bit of information._

_"So they left four days ago? How long do you expect them to be gone?"_

_The old hound growled in his throat, narrowing his eyes at nothing in particular. Fox didn't think that was a good sign._

_"Hard to say, Fox. Their contract didn't outline any specific timeline, so it could be awhile. Though, I doubt it will be more than a month or two."_

_This time it was Fox that growled. He had hoped that with his graduation the three of them, Falco, Slippy and himself, would immediately join Star Fox. But if they weren't in the area, he supposed they would just have to wait until the team returned._

_"Alright, General. That's not that bad, I guess. I still would rather have had my Father here, but I understand why he's not… I'll be alright for a couple of months. Dad and I's house is here on Corneria, I'll just stay there until they return."_

_Fox almost missed the General's abrupt stop as the pair passed in front of local café. Stopping two steps ahead of the old soldier, Fox turned around, confused by Pepper's odd move._

_"Fox, you aren't seriously thinking about just sitting idle for the next two months, are you?"_

_Fox furrowed his eyebrows at his oldest mentor, his right ear cocking to the side and down a little to display his increasing confusion._

_"I doubt I'll sit idle… I mean, Dad and I talked about getting some stuff done around the house last summer, but we never spend enough time there to actually accomplish anything."_

_The hound dog narrowed his gaze at the youth, the gesture stern and gentle at the same time. He closed the distance between them, shaking his head and groaning as he moved._

_"That's not what I meant, Fox. You just graduated near the top of your class from the most prestigious pilot school in all of Lylat. And as a First Class Pilot, to boot! Do you not think that your future resume would look bad when it shows that you did no professional flying for months after you graduated?"_

_Fox didn't know what to say. He would have been completely honest if had said he hadn't thought about it like that. Not that the General expected an answer. It was intended to be rhetorical._

_"Well I can't exactly find a job for just two months. I mean, when Star Fox gets back, I plan on joining them. I can't honestly expect an employer to hire me, than let me go after so short a time."_

_The chuckle that came with Pepper's booming voice did nothing for the vulpine's confusion and seemed sorely out of place._

_"You don't have to worry about it Fox. I've already taken care of it."_

_Fox's ears were now half-flat against his head._

_"You what?"_

_Pepper's chuckle deepened._

_"I spoke with your Father before he left. He agrees with my sentiments about you and your friends sitting still for two months. So, with his approval, I took the liberty of pushing yours, Lombardi's and Toad's mercenary registries up the chain. They came back approved this morning."_

_Fox wasn't sure if he wanted to smile or frown. Sure, he wanted to live the life that his father lived, but he wasn't sure how being registered already was going to help him and his friends. He quickly found out._

_"I also pulled some strings and did some digging, managed to find three vacant fighter pilot positions on cruisers close to the Corneria Defense Sector. I drew up temporary contracts for the three of you, hiring you into these positions within the Army until your father returns. Then, we'll pull you all back to Corneria so that you can take your proper places with Star Fox."_

_Fox couldn't believe his ears. To think that the General would have done this had not even remotely crossed his mind. But now that he was hearing it with his own ears, he finally let a smile tug clear across his face. To have an opportunity like this…_

_"General… I-I don't know what to say… Thank you!"_

_The General smiled back; glad to see the young pilots face bright again._

_"It was my pleasure, Fox. It was also the least I could do for your family after all you've sacrificed and accomplished. And don't worry. Two months isn't that long. After a quick run in the Army, you'll take your place by your father's side and you two will become the greatest mercenaries Lylat has ever seen." He broke his speech with a loud laugh. "If only Andross knew what will be happening in only a few short months!"_

* * *

Yeah. If Andross knew what would happen in a few short months, no one would need to worry about another war. Andross would laugh himself into a not so early enough grave if he had the chance to see where the star of Fox McCloud had risen. Two weeks after Fox had graduated he arrived on board the Cornerian Starship _Redfine_, while Slippy and Falco had both ended up on the _Aquetous_. What was supposed to be a quick two month work trip had turned into a three month introduction to hell, and Fox had lost his patience with it weeks ago. He was ready to prove himself. Ready to leave the life that he had lived so far and make it something better. Ready for his adventure to truly begin.

"Falcon Leader to Redfine Control, Falcon squadron reporting in from patrol and requesting docking clearance, over."

Fox sighed as he left his thoughts and decided to focus on the here and now. Up ahead, some ten kilometers away, idled the ship he had called home these past three months. The Redfine was named for General Pepper's predecessor, Grand Admiral Thomas Redfine who died shortly before the ship was completed. Even this far out, the ship looked huge. Not as big as his father's Dreadnaught, the Great Fox, but far larger than some of its faster Cornerian siblings. And what it lacked in speed, it more than made up for in firepower.

"Falcon Leader, this is Redfine Control. Docking sequence is on standby in the primary bay. We're ready when you are and welcome home. Over."

"Acknowledged, Control. We're bringing 'em in. Out. Falcon Squadron, go in by the numbers. Falcons II and III, you know the drill. I'll see you inside. Out!"

The lieutenant cut off his mic while Fox watched the rest of the fighters line up and fly into the Heavy Cruiser's forward ship bay. He followed along until it was his turn, guiding the small ship into place beside Falcon VI. Fox had no problems landing; he never did. It was one thing he knew he could do in his sleep. James had taught him how to land a ship when Fox was still a kit. The memory brought a smile to the young man's face as he touched down and began the fighter's shutdown sequence. His cockpit dome was just starting to rise when Kevin flew his fighter in to rest right beside Fox's. The shrew wasn't as gentle as Fox had been touching down, but the ship didn't seem to complain about the roughness of the landing.

Fox had just picked up the clipboard resting to the right of his seat when Kevin's dome started to rise. The young rodent wasted no time jumping out of his cockpit and stretching his sore muscles. Fox was never that quick to jump out of his seat, preferring to let the shutdown sequence finish before he got out.

"Hey, Fox!" The shrew's voice was barely carrying to the vulpine despite the fact that he was yelling. "Would you mind helping me check out my landing struts? I heard some weird creaks when I landed."

"Sure thing, Kevin. Just let me finish my post-flights and I'll be right over."

Having filled out the details of his latest trip on the post-flight report sitting on his clipboard, Fox removed his helmet (Which he hated, but had to wear as long as he was flying with the Army) and jumped out. He copied Kevin's movements, stretching his arms and legs as he stood on the wing of his black and green fighter. Since he had nothing better to do during this time, he took note of some of the activity around him. Kevin was ducking back into his cockpit to grab his own post-flight report and Fox could hear the chatter of the other three junior pilots as they congregated between their own fighters. He could barely make out the squad NCOs, standing in the shadows on the far end of the bay waiting for the commander to arrive. That was one thing that Fox could not deny respecting about the ferocious Doberman. He never docked until he was sure all his men were down first.

Done with his stretching and not ready to waste any more time, Fox went back to his report, checking the important parts of his ship one by one to make sure they were still in working order. He was still busying himself with this when the last Falcon landed on the far end of the bay.

00000

Lieutenant Arden did not consider himself to be a mean man. He considered himself to be a soldier and an Officer. This title and position meant that sometimes he had to be hard and get his point across with aggression and, if necessary, violence. He also expected those under him to recognize their place and to know when to toe the line and when to stay ten meters behind it!

These were the reasons he had made an example of 'Private' McCloud when he arrived three months ago. Arden was sure the young son of the legendary James McCloud would walk in thinking himself the prince of pilots and conduct himself accordingly. He thought that that was exactly what had happened, too. However, right now, as he removed his helmet and jumped from his fighter, he was considering the possibility that maybe he had been wrong. For the last month, he had been growing ever more leery of the asteroids the young mercenary had spoken to him about; His own mind beginning to draw the same conclusions as McCloud. Those rocks were the perfect hiding place.

That fact combined with how McCloud had handled the extra 'attention' he told his NCOs to give him left the officer feeling both proud of the boy and humbled that he had judged to quickly… Not that he would ever admit either to anyone but himself!

The stern Doberman jumped off his wing and approached his NCOs and the young pilots in front of him. He took note that two were missing, however, before he had a chance to demand an explanation he caught site of them, still at their fighters with clipboards in their hands, checking wings, exhaust ports, G-diffusers and assorted other devices critical to the ships operation. Now he knew he couldn't hold anything against the newest members of his squadron. After all, they were emulating his own actions without ever having seen him do it. He didn't know whether to smile or be angry at the pilots for doing so well.

He turned back to his NCOs, catching each of their eyes as the two acknowledged that they saw what he had seen. Arden also took note of the three clipboards siting on a service bench next to the Sergeants, the reports on them suspiciously empty.

"Privates Gern, Fleet and Specialist Pearing!"

"Yes Sir!"

The lieutenant stared at the clipboards, picking them all up as he turned to meet the fearful eyes of his soldiers. He held the clipboards out for the three to see, each one losing a bit of color as they realized what was about to happen.

"Whose responsibility is it to maintain these fighters?"

There was a deathly quiet in the bay as the question settled. None of the three soldiers made an attempt to answer, each of them thinking that it was a rhetorical question.

"The commander just asked you a question." The wolf NCO growled as he glared at them. "You will answer him."

It was the weasel, Private Fleet, who answered.

"Sir!" He squeaked. "The mechanics are responsible for all repairs and services on our Vector-class fighters, Sir!"

He expected that answer.

"I didn't ask who is responsible for **fixing** these fighters; I asked who was responsible for **maintaining** these fighters! Do you understand the difference?"

Once again, the soldiers replied together.

"No Sir!"

"The difference is simple. Fixing is where you correct a problem. Maintaining is what you do to find out if there is a problem. The mechanics do not fly these ships. We do! That being the case, we are the only ones who can know for sure if there is something wrong. We are the ones who find problems on our ships. The mechanics are the ones who fix them. So, who is responsible for maintaining these fighters?!"

"We are, Sir!"

The officer held up the clipboards.

"Then what are you waiting for? Maintain them!"

When he yelled the order, the three pilots each grabbed a clipboard and ran as fast as they could back to their fighters, Gern tripping on himself in the process. Both NCOs chuckled to themselves as they too returned to their fighters. Lt. Arden was about to do the same before he stole another glance at his two 'missing' pilots.

"McCloud! Dean! Front and Center!"

"Moving Sir."

The vulpine bolted from under his ship, swerving to avoid several puddles of grease along the way. The shrew was a little behind, having had to job off his wing before running. The officer only had to wait a few seconds before both of them were present, standing at attention with their clipboards tucked under one arm. Arden said nothing. Instead he walked up to Dean and took his clipboard, scanning the reports from that day as well as those from earlier in the month. Without a word, he handed it back to the pilot.

As he stepped over to McCloud, he found the clipboard already presented to him, its owner having seen the lieutenant's actions with the shorter soldier. Arden repeated the process with these reports, taking longer to absorb the highly detailed records the mercenary kept on his ship. Satisfied with the time he had taken, Falcon Leader handed the clipboard back and stepped between the two.

"Well done… Both of you."

He let the statement hang for only a second.

"Now back to it."

Both pilots rendered crisp salutes, to which the officer responded in kind. As the three dropped the salute, Dean took off back to his fighter, leaving McCloud to meet the gaze of the lieutenant for the first time ever. Arden let him, responding to the contact with a subtle nod. Then McCloud was off as well. The officer hoped the kid got what he wanted from that brief validation; Cause it sure as hell wasn't going to happen again!

00000

Fox spent the rest of his checks trying to comprehend what had just happened. It seemed to him that his commander had not only complimented his and Kevin's actions, but also offered a silent respect to him. Fox really didn't know what to make of it, and at this moment, he didn't know if he would ever really find out.

"Fox, you done over there?"

He let the matter drop, focusing instead on his friend in need. Maybe this meant that things would start looking up around here. He didn't put much faith in it becoming somewhere he wanted to stay, but maybe his next few weeks would be tolerable. He was still itching for his chance; his chance to walk in his father's footsteps. To finally live the adventure he'd been wanting.

He didn't realize he'd get his wish sooner then he thought…

* * *

**So, what do you think? **

**Despite that I managed to write a 6500 word prologue, I was incredibly happy with the way this turned out. And for those who are wondering where the story begins, the action you're looking for starts next chapter, which, while not written, is working.**

**Let me know what you think and until I see you again...**

**Stay Frosty!**


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